by The instruction given to Christ Tshiunza by Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter sounds simple enough.
“He has to keep it simple. He is a very thoughtful man throughout rugby. As much as we laugh at some guys and say that they need to be a little more of a student, he needs to let himself play. That really shows his athletic ability. Don’t overthink things, just go with the flow,” explains Baxter.
There is one clear question, however. If you are as curious about the opposition as Tshiunza is, eagerly deconstructing the information provided in team meetings and putting it on the training pitch and seeing how certain situations might play out in a game, the switch may not be easy to find. Exeter has extensive meetings, some lasting up to two hours.
“I take the time to almost let myself learn visually,” Tshiunza explains, adding that it takes a minute of training to process the plays made by the non-match squad players, pretending to be the opposition them, running against the first team. . It all sounds pretty heavy, mentally downloading concepts and combat styles every week, and then starting over. Perhaps that is why Tshiunza emphasizes the following point: “Everyone takes information in a different way, but I can proudly say that at the weekend; I’m on it.”
It certainly was against Bath last weekend. The round of 16 win was only Tshiunza’s second game back from a broken leg that kept him out for five months. Bath, blown by the wind and their impressive defensive efforts in the first half, still had a late chance to win after another Sam Underhill check penalty resulted in a lineout on the Exeter 22. Tshiunza, up front, poached the ball past Charlie Ewels and Exeter kept their lead.
‘I want to return to international level within a few games’
It wasn’t his first steal of the game either, with Tshiunza finishing as Exeter’s top scorer (14). “High numbers, high quality,” as Baxter put it. Which makes you wonder what Tshiunza could produce this weekend in the Champions Cup quarter-final against Toulouse with more minutes under his belt. “I want to be a high achiever, to prove that I can return to the international level within a few games in a short time.”
You can often forget how young some players are, how much potential they still have. Tshiunza made his debut for Wales as a teenager and is only 22 years old. The size was always there at 6ft 6in but he has come back from that injury with a lot more weight, up around a stone to put him at around 18-and-a. – half, a deliberate move to make Tshiunza as capable of covering in the second row as he is in the back. In recent years, George Martin, an English forward, has added the same amount of weight to play as more of a lock.
“I see myself as a back/second tier hybrid,” says Tshiunza, adding that his previous weight at 17-and-a-half stone “limited my options”. An optimist himself, his injury recovery was an “opportunity to work on myself” and “get my head right, get closer to my friends”. He was understandably “righted” for missing the Six Nations but the process of absorbing that disappointment has its own value. “I learned a few good life lessons, how to handle things without getting in your way.”
Wales’ morale was ‘good’ despite the Six Nations wooden spoon
He linked up with Wales for the final weeks of the winless Six Nations, continuing his recovery. Wales’ poor performance in the last round against Italy, which led to the wooden spoon, suggested that things were badly out of whack. Tshiunza sees it differently.
“It looked like we weren’t quite ready at the weekend, but I really thought, in terms of the standard of training and how everything was run, the boys trained really well and really enthusiastic, they really wanted to win and perform for their country,” he said. “There was good morale, a young team with good manners around the place. I think that softened the blow.”
Exeter has a young, positive attitude this season – albeit with more obvious success – with the club playing in the finals of the Gallagher Premiership and the last eight in Europe.
Rus Tuima (23 years old, England U20), Dafydd Jenkins (21, Wales captain), Ethan Roots (26, England), Tshiunza and Ross Vintcent (21, Italy) are second and third back row this weekend. ). Not forgetting Greg Fisilau on the bench (20, England ‘A’). As a group, they are balanced. Jenkins and Tshiunza are there to do the dirty work, clearing the brows “and hitting anything that moves” so that Roots and Vintcent can free themselves (Roots with attack, Vintcent with speed). “[Against Bath] it was like eight different fives spinning the same wheel. We are allowed to express our strengths and abilities,” says Tshiunza.
‘Rob’s vision is a reality’
If there’s an opponent you’d feel too inclined to analyze from the inside it’s probably five-time winners Toulouse. Exeters are rare dogs – hardly a sign of disdain; who was the last team to meet at toulouse? – but that tag has served them well in the past. Much more has been achieved than expected in an alleged rebuilding year.
“It’s a credit to Rob. His vision is really quite. He can see things that others cannot. He knew that this season was not going to be okay and to build a small base before going after the next season,” explains Tshiunza.
“When I came back from the World Cup, you could see that this was not a young team or a university team. It was a Premiership winning team, boys with ambition. A lot of youthful spirit, you could feel it all over the place, it was a vibe. And really, I’d rather play in a young team like that than an older side with experienced players when it feels like we’re going to succeed because we’re good.
“We’ve proven a lot of people wrong this year. Rob talks about us playing at our best when we’re in full swing and that might happen this weekend. I think Rob is comfortable [with that tag] and build a team around that. We are a team now and if you blink, you might miss it.”
For Tshiunza, bigger and better after he left, the message is clear. Turn off, play your game, and impose yourself.
